T: This is new to me. An IPA without a significant bitterness. If this is an English IPA. A sweet crystal malt profile and a bit of bready yeast play into the taste. (EDIT: Was a 2, the later bottle had better bitterness and hop flavours, though still muted to my liking)

M: Thin and watery. No carbonation can't help. (EDIT: Was 1.5, but much better in the second bottle with carbonation. Bright in the mouth).

D: I have one more bottle. May it not be flat or I will never seek out a Duggan again as long as I can remember. (EDIT: was a 2 - much more drinkable though not exactly what I was looking for in an IPA) (1,063 characters)

Had this at the brewery a couple times, but the need for a 6 pack of something to bring to a UFC PayPerView party meant I wanted something smooth, easy to drink but still enough substance to quench my beer snob palate.

Served at 50 Degrees. No date on bottle.

A: Cool looking, small (275ml) minimalist design bottle, Poured into a stella tulip. Very deep copper-brown color. Huge head, which sticks to the glass like glue and lasts for the entire experience.

T: Sweet malts upfront. A little honey and caramel center, then a good rush of hops peruses the sweetness down your throat. Sweetness does linger in the finish, but enough hop presence remains to balance things.

M: Quite a solid brew. Medium to heavy bodied. Coats the palate well.

D: Looking forward to sessioning this one whilst the gladiators of our time square off in the octagon. (923 characters)

Three fingers of frothy beige head rest on top of a perfectly clear ruby amber body, coating the glass with puffy lace as it takes its time dissipating. The colour is unlike anything I've seen before in the style. What a great looking IPA!

I like my American version of this bitter style to be robust, tropical, and oozing with hops, and unfortunately, this meets none of my expectations. Delicate would be a nice way of putting it. This one's very malt forward with biscuit, caramel, and bready malts edging out the slight floral and earthy hop character. Some reassuring grapefruit and lemon peel can also be pulled out, but based on the nose, I don't expect much from this one.

Thankfully floral and grassy hops are more assertive in the taste, pinching the sides of the tongue before they roll to the back of the palate. Sweet and toasty bready malts come in smooth and creamy and do well at trying to equal the hop presence. The finish is more astringent and earthy with a good lingering quality.

Creamy and smooth but a tad light for its higher ABV. Dry in the finish with a refreshing quality to it. Not what I'm looking for in an IPA and that's why the drinkability is average at best.

I like supporting local breweries and because of that, I'd be more than happy to try Duggan's other offerings, but this one again? Probably not. A decent beer in general, but far from a good American IPA. As a side note, despite this not being my favorite beer, I wish he would package it in a standard bottle size. (1,513 characters)

Pours a very clean dark amber from the bottle with a slightly off-white head that just does not want to dissipate in my glass, leaving a thick story-telling web of lace down the side.

A maltier IPA than most..but balanced with floral notes, sweet fruit, caramel, and hops. It reminds me of an APA like Anchor Steam, a hoppy Tankhouse..but not with a west-coast IPA hop-profile that maybe I was expecting. In any case, I could drink this all day long out of those tiny little bottles, or on tap with some hot wings and curry poutine. Fuck yeah. (677 characters)

Very nice stuff! After hearing about this for a long time, I have finally gotten to try it.

Pours with a cream colored head that dissipates rather fast. The beer itself is a nice deep amber color. Smells familiar immediately, a nice balance of hops, citrus and flowers (from the hops), and malt and something sweet. Tastes the same: sweet like caramel, some bitterness from the hops, and background malt smoothes it all out. Little carbonation but there are some bubbles floating around.

Pretty thin mouthfeel I guess, but overall its a great balance of flavor and drinkability, something I would definitely buy again. Now if only it could make its way to the average LCBO or Beer Store... (742 characters)

A good looking beer, clear chestnut brown under a moderate head that settles to a heavy film and leaves some very nice lace.

Nose full of carmel malts and grapefruit from hops. Very fruity and pleasant. That carries on through to the taste. Initial mouthfeel gives a bitter bite and then a mouthful of sweet malt. Distinct grapefruit rind flavour from the hops. Finishes with lingering bitterness and a hint of spice.

Appearance: An easy 3 finger head that just won't quit with amazing retention and spider web-like lines crisscrossing in the glass. The body is a dark amber bordering on brown with a very hazy aspect.

Smell: Biscuity and piney with a bit of fruit.

Taste: Very malt forward with the bitterness coming more in the aftertaste. Some caramel going on here and a touch of sweetness though it leans more towards dryness. Seems more like an English IPA to me which knocks some points off otherwise it's pretty decent.

Mouthfeel: It is honestly a bit weak and watery. Though it isn't uncomfortable, it's not as strong as an IPA should be.

Drinkability: A smaller size and an unobtrusive ABV make it not bad but it's not something i would readily get again.

Overall: An average IPA. Nothing memorable stands out for me except the appearance. It's good but you can find a better IPA. (973 characters)

Toronto's Newest Craft Brewery is being run by one of Toronto's original Brew Masters. Mike Duggan was previously the Brew Master at the Mill Street Brewery when they were first building their business. Mike has since moved and opened his own BrewPub in downtown Toronto, Duggan's Brewery at Victoria just south of Richmond. The #9 IPA has just made its way into LCBOs, and is getting acclaims at every beer festival it goes to.

Honestly, I was pretty hesitant to enjoy this beer at first, but I'm not really sure why. I had no good reason, and I enjoy some of the beers that Mike created over at Mill Street. So my concern was completely unfounded. There was only one way to right this wrong, so I grabbed a 6 pack of #9′s and tossed them in the fridge. They come in oddly thin 275ml bottles with very clean and simple branding which I quite like. I would have preferred more beer, even just the standard 341 or 355ml, but the 6 pack is less expensive also, so no one is getting jipped. The skinny bottle is also really pretty, it grew on me more and more as I looked at it. But hows the beer? Thats the important question.

This is a real IPA, one with flavor, complexity, and depth. It has been brewed with 9 different malts, and comes in at 6.2% ABV. Mike's goal here is a West Coast style IPA with vibrant and bright piney flavors on a hop focused citrus bouquet. The key here will be the balance between rich hops and soothing malts. Not everyone can pinpoint this, I do have faith in Duggan though.

I opened the #9 cool around 8C (45F) and poured it into a stemmed beer glass. The pour was very smooth and creamy building a frothy and mildly dense khaki colored foam right from the start. Gently, a richly amber brown beer rumbled with foam until a deeply glowing beer was produced. The head stood just over an inch with a creamy consistency trapped in a pillowy eggshell froth. The beer shone from the center with rich mahogany browns emanating out to golden brick, dark copper and bright spots of ruby. Into the sun especially you can see the richness of this beer - it is transparent but very deep, already proving the vast malt complexity.

The nose was perfect from the first sniff, and got me hooked. I think I spent a few minutes smelling this beer before even tasting it. Rich malty caramel and toffee blended so perfectly with smooth floral hops and zesty citrus flavors with a back end of pine, earth, hay fields and freshness. The more I think about it, the more this beer impressed me. Genuinely creamy malt sensations glide into your senses showing rich gooey sweetness, but also an earthy and complex round of leather and brown sugar. The hops sat right next to all the 9 malts and brought excellent balance creating a crisp and refreshing sensation.

Eventually I would have to try this beer, and by now I was very excited to. Exactly like the nose, this beer is sublimely balanced on your palate with huge waves of flavor. Could it be that Ontario has really produced a West Coast IPA that can compete with the, well, guys from the West Coast!? First the malts glide with with a wide structure showing your lips, tongue, cheeks and throat exactly what they were meant to - smoothly lush, and richly deep malts with the classic toffee and dark caramel flavor that is perfect in a big IPA.

Juicy rich malt flavors show complexity again with hints of dried fruit, charred savory flavors, and barley fresh feelings. They big key though is that right when the malts begin to overpower, the hops burst in with a lemon zest, fresh pine, grapefruit and earthy bitterness that proved to quench, refresh, and balance the #9 IPA perfectly. Ya, perfectly.

I'm left with a clean and bittersweet mouthfeel that is smooth and gently carbonated in a masterful design. This was very well done Mike, thank you! I'm going for the #9 next with some Indian or Thai food, something real spicy that I can only have on rare occasions. This IPA is going to match the sweet and robust flavors perfectly, and sooth and clean the spicy with ease. (4,052 characters)

Poured into a nonic glass. A deep copper brew, some light carbonation. A terrific head for a bottled ale - a good half inch, lots of patchy lacing, excellent retention.

Nose is malty and fruity, with only a touch of spices and hops. Not really an IPA nose, more of a standard American pale ale. Still terrific though.

Not nearly as hoppy as I'd expected, but they are certainly there in the back. Spicy and peppery to the finish, the hops seem more East coast to me - rich and earthy. However, the malt character is this brew's defining attribute - caramel, cream, vanilla and red berries introduce the brew well. Hops feel a bit washed out for an IPA.

Slightly creamy, carbonation is a light sting. Medium bodied.

Definitely reminds me of Tankhouse, another exceptional Toronto brew. Not nearly hoppy enough for an IPA, it's damned close - and damned good. Exceptional value - probably the best 6 pack you can get for under 10 bucks ($9.95 at the Lower Jarvis LCBO). A pleasure to drink - another winner from Mike Duggan! (1,073 characters)

I've had this on cask and tap previously, but I finally decided to review this from a bottle. Pours an amber-copper colour with thick white head. Good head retention. Smells strongly of citrus hops and lots of sweet caramel malt. This tastes hoppier and bitter than it does on tap for some reason, which is good because I think on tap it can be more of a pale ale (similar to Mill Street Tankhouse). This is awesomely drinkable, and with the small bottles it doesn't take much effort to finish off a 6 pack. (507 characters)

Hazy cover of off-white head over a clear dark-copper body. Decent lacing.

Smells a bit floral with sweet citrus, caramel, bready malt and a little roast. Maybe the slightest amount of diacetyl, though it's not unpleasant. Doesn't smell at all like an IPA but would smell pretty great for a pale ale. I'm only picking up a hint of the kind of hopping that defines the nose of an IPA.

I've had this stuff a couple times and every time I'm immediately struck by how similar it is to Mill Street's Tankhouse Ale, which happens to be another brew by Mr. Duggan. I love Tankhouse but don't consider it to be an IPA and this stuff is really not all that different. I would say that it is hoppier than Tankhouse but still doesn't present enough hops to really fall under the heading of IPA. The beer is quite well-balanced, with earthy, peppery and slightly citrusy hops atop a caramely, bready malt base. The finish presents a touch of grapefruit rind. As a beer, there's nothing wrong here but I'd prefer the hops to be turned up quite a bit (especially some more citrus) if it's going to be called an IPA.

If I'm going to drink this stuff, I'd rather think of it as an American-style pale ale; of which it would be a damn good one. When I feel like drinking an IPA, #9 is sure to let me down. The hops just aren't there. Funny, if this was sold as Duggan's Pale Ale it would probably be one of my very favorite pale ales. Great beer; not really an IPA. (1,663 characters)

Strong, bitter IPA that mellows to hop tartness. Hops are fresh pine sharp with little citrus except at the very end when the citrus begins to shine through just before the taste dissipates and I take another sip, renewing the pine. The mouth-feel is a little thin but appropriate. Nicely biting and bitter.

Reviewed on 5/8/10 on tap at C'est What. Arrived to my perch at the bar in an imperial pint, nice deep red brown color with a thin tan head. Upon tasting this is a very balanced IPA. Nice hop bite in the opening that goes into a big malty backbone followed by a sweeter but tangy finish. Good mouthfeel, carbonation is evident after the initial hop blast. The carbonation gives a momentary snadpaper-like zest in the middle of the taste but then gets buried by the malt backbone. This is a solid brew, great for sessioning. (523 characters)

The beer appeared a dark amber color with nice white head that had decent retention that dissolved into a spotty cap. Some lacing was noted on the glass and the beer had noticeable carbonation flowing to the top of the glass.

The aroma was light, more hoppy than malty, but seemed to be well balanced, at least more so than some IPAs. Floral hops tended to dominate. Again, the aroma was lighter than I would have liked or expected for the style.

The taste of the beer is good. I felt that the taste was well balanced, but I was expecting more of a hoppy beer. Good malt and floral hops with a nice bitter aftertaste. The aftertaste seemed to last longer that the actual taste. The beer, in my opinion is more of a pale ale than an IPA, hence the score.

The beer has a much lighter feel to it than expected and given that it made the beer very easy to drink and I found the beer crisp and refreshing. Overall, a decent beer and one that I would probably try again. (1,001 characters)

A nice looking very clear dark burnished amber. Nice pale tan head enjoys sticking around, and is aided by the persistent yet fine carbonation. Nice and sticky lacings do stick around as well.

A decent enough nose as well, nice malts, bready pale malts and a nice touch of caramel. Hops are nice too, but somewhat restrained. However their floral and citrus character is quite nice.

Taste is pretty good, the malts are spot on. The bitterness is certainly there, just wish it wasnt so clean and came with a more fruity punch.

A nice almost creamy medium bodied ale. Malts have enough presence to stand up to some decent hop bitterness. Almost resinous with pine, just wish it had more of a grapefruit or tropical fruit balance.

A pretty good beer, and at only 10oz bottle its pretty easy to knock more than a few back. Thanks to Miguel, i really enjoyed this Canadian IPA, this is something i would recommend to any IPA fan to try. It is also something i would enjoy having again. (984 characters)

A well made local IPA is a wonderful thing. And with some anticipation I poured my bottle of #9 expecting something new, local and fresh. What I got however was something similar to tankhouse.

It looks good. A dark amber colour with a nice rocky head that left lacing down the side of my glass. It eventually subsided to a ring of foam. I like the colour.

The smell is good. Sweet berries mixed with hops. The taste is where the tankhouse resemblance really comes into play. Dark toasted malts with medium bitter hops come into the forefront quickly and continue to dominate. The fruit in the nose is missing and so is any balance. I can appreciate why some people would like it because I know some people really dig tankhouse - but this one was not for me.

Mouthfeel is soft and fairly smooth as a result of pin sized carbonation. Drinkability is not this beers strong suit. It comes in a small, 275ml bottle and I don't think I'd reach for another immediately after finishing the first. (1,032 characters)

A refreshing IPA. This is my everyday beer, replaces Mill St. Tankhouse in my fridge. The only down side is that I have to go to the brewpub to get it and it only comes in a 4-pack. But overall well worth the trip there, the other beers and food is great. It pours a lovely copper brown. Smells ripe with malt and hops. Very refreshing for an IPA. Would like it to finish a little longer but its inital flavour makes up for its short finish. This is made really well by, in my opinion, one of Canada's best brewmasters period. I will buy this as long as they make it. (567 characters)

I picked up a dozen of these at the brewpub last night - disappointed to see they've gone to a smaller 275 ml bottle; on top of that it seems the price went up.

In any event, pours a two finger foamy head with a gorgeous chestnut brown lustrous veneer. There are nicely dispersed small bubble streams spread about the glass for an attractive although it seems overly dark-hued IPA.

Nose is classic hoppy citrus aroma. Taste is sharp and hoppy, grapefruit, very bitter cleansing finish, huge malt bill, seems to be a bit of cloying molasses going on too. The finish is extremely long and bitter and frankly detracted a bit in the drinkability department. Similar to Mill St. Tankhouse Ale and I recall enjoying Magnotta's True North IPA more than this. Overall not a bad beer but I don't think this is an IPA I would want to drink a lot of. (843 characters)

There was a time. There was a time when bell bottoms were fashionable for men, a time when the Earth was believed to be flat, when white bread was only a delicacy of the rich. There was a time when rusty, dark amber coloured beers like this were considered 'pale'. And this one, with its pristine clarity, would have been considered phenomenally pale.

A suitably hopped (new-age) IPA should singe your nose hairs - this one leaves them swimming in a sugary serum. It's as if they boiled off excess to water to concentrate more of the malty flavours and forgot to increase the hops accordingly. These hops are tangy and fruity, sure, but only as much as the sun is ever really hot in wintertime.

Duggan #9 tastes an awful lot like Tankhouse Ale, a beer originally developed by Mike Duggan when he worked for Mill Street Brewing. Both are amber-style ales, abundantly malty with a liberal amount of C-hops. Both are fine, outstanding beers despite that neither ever seems sufficiently sassy, lavish or loose enough in the hop department...

What's come to be known as the 'West Coast' IPA is a brightly citric, zestfully fruity and profoundly one-sided beer that showcases hops in all their glory. An IPA like this, although relatively hoppy in its own right, muddles things up by grounding all those tangy, scintillating hops in a clammy, soggy maltiness that is full of heavier, more viscous flavours.

And while those flavours are tasteful, when I'm really in the mood for an IPA - a brimming, audacious American style IPA - I find gluey malts out of character, nutty light roast unseemly and the thick, chewy caramel to be altogether lumbering and ill-matched. I don't my want my palate lulled by sugars, I want my gums cut up on sharp, citric hops!

Both interpretations make quenching, delectable beers but if you're a die-hard hophead it shouldn't take long for you to become disillusioned with this more conservative, balanced rendition. If you're just one who appreciates toothsome, quality, well-rounded beers then #9 will accord quite well with you, as it does me (provided I'm not in hop withdrawal!). (2,117 characters)

Bottle: Poured a clear medium brown color ale with a light foamy head with average retention and some lacing. Aroma consists of dry caramel malt with light bitter hoppy notes also noticeable. Taste is also dominated by some light caramel malt notes with a very subtle bitter hoppy finish. Body is about average with good carbonation. This is closer to an APA then an IPA and would benefit from having additional hops. (417 characters)

Pours a clear brown color with a white head. The aroma is not very strong, with some toffee and caramel malt. The flavor is toffee and biscuit malts with some biting hops. Certainly didn't expect that amount of bitterness from the aroma. High carbonation and thin mouthfeel. (319 characters)

A - One finger tan head that dissolves quickly and leaves attractive lacework. The body is one of the darkest I've ever seen for a single IPA - transparent dark coppery brown with a nice glow when held to the light. If this had better head volume and retention it'd be perfect.

S - Hop character seems like a mix of slightly dank Columbus hops and peachy Simcoe - maybe a bit of Cascade soapiness. This is definitely "East Coast" as it has a pretty strong malt backbone of caramel and bread. Reminds me a little of DFH90, but less boozy and aromatic.

T - There aren't a ton of flavoring hops, although the residual bitterness is quite pleasant and exposes their presence. There's some light floral and fruity notes on top of a highly present caramel malt base.

M - Light carbonation tingle, smooth, and a fairly resinous residual feel. Could use a touch more dryness in the finish, but otherwise no problems here.

D - This went down fast - nice texture and moderate bitterness make this a good session option. Glad to see a decent local IPA in Ontario - bring on the Imperial version! (1,157 characters)